Dreamweaver
by Chaos-harbinger
Summary: Yumemiru. An ancient evil once thought to be sealed away forever by a dying Byakko warrior, has returned. It will take all of Suzaku's warriors to seal him away again, but not without help.
1. Default Chapter

Wow. I totally rewrote this fic after I went over it again. It was my first ever fic and it needed a face-lift, bad. I hope this version gets a much more welcome response than the last one. I tell you it was crap. A very smelly piece of crap and now I know why no one liked it the first time around. Well this isn't your typical "oh look there's another priestess" routine. Lord there are too many out there for moi to add to. Soo I settled on something else. And _nooo_ this is not a self insert, Mary sue or any of that. The character is slightly OC but in later chapters you'll find out why I said "slightly". Other than that I say on with the show.

Ch. 1

A long and dreary day at college had left Arashi drained and weary. Knowing she still had to pull an all-nighter for winter finals, she put on her trusty old sweats and favorite oversized tee and settled down for a long night. _'This is what I get for being such a procrastinator.'_ Tetsuya, it seemed, had some late night cramming to do as well when he walked in droopy-eyed, and carrying a stack load of text books. He sat down at the tatami table and joined Arashi, spreading out his books deciding which subject to tackle first. Both roommates had been studying diligently and helping each other out in certain subjects for a good two hours, when Arashi decided to get some energizers for the home stretch.

"Hey, bro. I'm goin' t' da kitchen, ya want anythin'?" she asked, her Osaka dialect as present as ever. She tried to hide it, since she wasn't from Tokyo, but she always ended up tripping over her words. Tetsuya only nodded, which by now, Arashi was used to. It was up to her to pick something out for him, and that always meant coffee, _strong_ coffee. So while the coffee perked, she ate ice cream straight out of the tub, at this point not really caring if anybody else got her germs. She poured the coffee into two mugs and watched, for a moment, the steam rise up invitingly towards her nose. She placed the two mugs on a serving tray next to plates full of cookies and chocolate and basically anything with sugar in it. Then she headed back towards the study session.

On her way back, Arashi passed by Tetsuya's room and on the floor was something that made her stop. An ancient book, all in Chinese and faintly glowing white. She thought her sleep-deprived eyes were playing tricks on her, and since she couldn't read Chinese, thought it was one of Tetsuya's text books that he had forgotten. She placed it on the tray with the coffee and continued on her way.

"Ahhh, coffee. Oooh and its sugar rush time too? Yay!" Tetsuya squealed at the sight of the goodies. Arashi set down the tray and picked up the book. She didn't know why, she just felt compelled to grab it.

"Hey, Tetsuya, when didja start takin' Chinese fer a language class?" she prodded, opening the book.

"Hey! You shouldn't-" but it was too late, she opened the book and saw....nothing. The pages were....blank?

"What teh hell? Der's nothin' in here!" However, no sooner were the words out of her mouth, the pages sprang to life and she was drawn into the world of the Mysterious Play.

Tasuki had been tracking a group of rogue bandits for 4 weeks now, and was just catching up to fresh tracks. His warrior speed was of little use when tracking, because he always ended up back-tracking after he had bypassed the trail. So he resorted to tracking normally, which was a long and arduous process. The trail was becoming more recent the farther he ventured into Hokkan. They seemed to be taking their sweet time, staying two or three days at a time, raping and pillaging as they pleased. This is why he was tracking them; they were smearing the name of the Mt. Reikaku bandits. _'We have a code to follow, no rape and no needless destruction. They broke that code, now they pay.'_ Both he and Koji had banished the troupe, hoping that they would have the sense not to try anything stupid. Nope, not a chance. Tasuki was getting tired of having to see village after village up in flames, nothing but death and destruction in their wake. Tonight was the night he would finally catch up to them; he just hoped he wasn't too late to stop another needless attack.

Coming upon a clearing, Tasuki could clearly see the bandits surrounding something _'or someone'_ in curiosity. He strained to hear what they were saying without giving away his position.

"Lookit 'er hair, its soo strange, unnatural-like. An' 'er clothes, I ain't never seen nothin' like 'um." A big brute of a man spoke up. He was fingering the hair, which to Tasuki, was strange, but having spent time in Miaka's world, however briefly, had seen some teens with the same style. The kids first bleach their hair and then colored the ends an unnatural color; the ends of this person's hair were a deep royal purple. The clothes that the brute spoke of were indeed unusual for this world as well. Women did not often wear pants and the strange tunic she wore had the saying "WARNING: Rabid Fan girl", not something you see everyday in Hokkan, or, for that matter, China.

"So what?! A woman's a woman, an' they're only good fer one thing only, an' that's makin' me happy!" said a shorter man, whose figure was still intimidating and had an air of command about him. He seemed to be the closest thing to a leader this rag-tag team of bandits had. It seemed he was going to have the first shot at the unconscious girl in front of them, by the hungry look in his eyes, but Tasuki was not about to stand by and do nothing. He may hate women, but he drew the line at violation, whether it was abuse or rape, both were absolutely out of the question. While the men were preoccupied in their little circle, he snuck up behind the "leader" and tapped him on the shoulder. _'The old turn-around-to-a-knuckle-sandwich trick. Works like a charm.'_ As soon as the man turned around, he was sent reeling backwards over the girl. The big brute to the left took a swing at Tasuki but was too slow. _'Slow-brained, monkey-faced morons.'_ Tasuki dropped down to a crouching position while one leg swept around in circular direction, taking the big man's feet out from under him. Once the two "problem" children were dealt with, the other three ran, they ran like bats out of hell.

"Good riddance. Now t' deal wid these two idjits.' He tied the two men to a tree and left them food and water. _'If they could reach it o'course. Well I can't jus leave her here fer some other mongrel t' find.' _Making up his mind, Tasuki lifted her onto his back, draping her arms over his shoulders and setting her thighs on his hips. She didn't seem to be from this world, rather, she reminded him of Miaka and her sailor fuku. His heart panged at the thought. No, he must think of the task at hand, not reminisce about past mistakes. Tasuki had been going at full speed, blanking out every now and then to think about what he was going to do with this mysterious newcomer, when she started to stir. He slowed to a stop as her eyes began to open.

"Huh? Wha-? Who? WOAH! Who're you?! An'...where...?" she looked around for the first time and saw the forest, not the small tatami table she shared with Tetsuya. For a few seconds she just stared wide-eyed and slack-jawed, and then a loud "POOF!" and the ever familiar "DA!" rang through the air.

"HOLY CRAP! What izzat?! A friggin' squirrel?!"

"Ya' know I said the same thin' when I firs' saw 'im."

It had just become too much for her already crammed out brain to handle, so Arashi passed out, overwhelmed by her current situation. Tasuki heard the loud THUMP behind him and found her once again sprawled out on the forest floor. _'Well doesn't dis look familiar.'_ He picked her up again, but this time he carried her in his arms since they wouldn't be running forever and a day no that Chichiri was there.

"What brings ya' all teh way out here, Chichiri? I thought I'd be runnin' fer days."

"Miaka and Tamahome came back and they want to see all of us, No da!" Chichiri chirped. He was already taking off his cloak, seeing as there would be three of them journeying to the palace in Konan. Striking the center of the cloth, Chichiri motioned for Tasuki to go through. He was met on the other side by the rest of the Suzaku warriors, including Tamahome, who was sporting a worried look along with Miaka. Both of their frowns seemed to dissipate when they saw who Tasuki had in his arms.

"Tasuki! You found Arashi!"

(A/N): and that's the way the cookie crumbles. Hehe I hope you guys all like the updated version. For those of you new to this story, thank GOD you never saw the first one. Oh and remember to review ppl!


	2. I'm confused What's going on?

HOLY FART MUFFINS!!!!11!! THIS IS ONE OF THE LONGEST CHAPTERS I HAVE EVER WRITTEN. (so far) I wanted to write more but I have class soon sooooooo yeah, well that and I want to update like now. sooo here it is the next instalment in my rewriting of a crappy story (mine not miss watatse's.) I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 2 I'm confused. What's going on?

"Eh? So yeh know this girl?"

"Yes! Oh thank God you found her Tasuki, we thought we'd be looking for days for her," Miaka beamed, relieved that her friend was okay.

"Here Tasuki lemme take her, I'm sure your tired and we have to get her home anyway," Tamahome offered, his arms outstretched. For some unknown reason, Tasuki didn't want the girl to leave just yet, he felt he knew her somehow and wanted to get to know her more. Maybe it was her accent or her strange hair. Whatever it was, something tugged at the back of his mind that made him almost sad to see her leave. However, he just shrugged it off and handed her to Tamahome.

"So ya'll just came back here fer her an' you ain't gonna stay 'n visit?" Tasuki mused.

"We'll be right back Tasuki, it's just Tetsuya's worried about her and she has a very important test tomorrow. Promise we'll come right back," Miaka smiled at him. That smile would always melt his heart, no matter if she loved Tamahome instead or not. The warm red light of Suzaku began to surround Miaka, Tamahome and the strange girl that Tasuki had found and they began their transition from the world of the Four beast gods to theirs. However a blinding white light burst forth from Arashi, canceling out the red light that faded as Miaka and Tamamhome disappeared.

* * *

Suzaku called out to Miaka, halting their progress home. Tamahome then noticed that Arashi was no longer in his arms. He began to panic, thinking she had been lost between the two worlds, but Suzaku placed a reassuring, yet still worried hand on his shoulder.

"Her journey is not yet over Tamahome. Quite the contrary, it is just beginning. If it were up to me, I would let her go back. However it is not up to me, it is up to Byakko. His warriors need her there and until this conflict is resolved she cannot go back."

"What? Why? I thought Byakko already had been summoned by Suzuno, why would-"

"She is not a priestess, Miaka. She is a warrior of Byakko who had been reborn into your world. Her soul traveled with Suzuno as she went back into your world by accident. Since she has been reintroduced to this world, things have been thrown into chaos and now her assistance is required to make it right."

* * *

"What th' hell? Why's she all glowy?" Tasuki and the others just stared in wonderment as the glow seemed to center around the back of her neck where a symbol was beginning to form. The power emanating from within Arashi created claw-like marks in her clothes as she floated down onto the floor. A loud, commanding voice boomed with a slight snarl. The voice was given a face as it loomed over Arashi. The face had two black stripes slashed across each cheek and three rising up the forehead into……._the fur?_ It had white fur where hair would be and the black stripes extended into the fur as well. The yellow cats eyes burned with anger at the fools who dared to defy him. He bares his fangs as them as he began to speak,

"The warriors of Suzaku do not hold dominion over mine. Amefuri belongs here and her assistance is required. She will not return to her world now unless the events of the past that lead to her reincarnation are recreated. In other words, she would have to die!"

The white light began to dissipate and the grand hall once again became silent and dim. For awhile the Suzaku warriors just looked at each other in bewilderment, trying to comprehend just what had taken place. Hotohori was the first to act, turning to Nuriko he said, "Do you still have any of your feminine clothing Nuriko? We can't leave her so threadbare and indecent."

"Certainly your highness."

Nuriko when back to his room and opened a very dusty trunk. He pulled out a simple yet stylish dress. The simplicity in its design is what made it elegant, with the shoulder-less sleeves and mostly black design with red trim. What was fitting was the red-stitched outline of a tiger that seemed to wrap itself around the wearer as the fabric draped over their body. There was even room for a wide range of movement by having slits on the upper thigh. '_Damn I can't find the pants! Oh and they were so soft and silky too!' _

Meanwhile, Tasuki and Mitsukake had moved Arashi to a vacant bedroom. _'The one Miaka slept in while she was here last time.' _Hotohori mused. Miaka wouldn't need it if she and Tamahome were to stay in the palace again. Nuriko came back with the dress, but felt a little unsure as to whether the dress would be inappropriate or not. His worries were dissolved however, when the palace servants were finished dressing her. The sweatpants Arashi had been wearing when she arrived here had not been too damaged by Byakko, thank goodness, and looked quite appropriate with the outfit.

* * *

"Where's Arashi? Where _is she?_!_" _Tetsuya anxiously asked. He looked like a nervous wreck with his hair all disheveled and the bags under his bloodshot eyes. He ran a shaky hand through his hair as he paced back and forth in front of Miaka, Tamahome, Keisuke and Yui. Miaka and Tamahome had tried their best to calm him down, telling him that she was alright, but none of it seemed to get through. Yui finally got him to sit down on the couch so they could sort out what to do.

"Tetsuya, how did the book end up in your apartment any way?" Keisuke looked suspiciously at his best friend. The book was supposedly sealed away in the back room of the library, out of anyone's reach. If it was at Tetsuya's apartment, then that meant that it wasn't safe and away from young and unsuspecting girls, and it would be the whole incident all over again if they weren't careful.

"Aha, well it's a funny story really," Tetsuya chuckled nervously. He was in trouble now that the cat was out of the bag. _Big _trouble.

"I'm sure it is Tetsuya," Keisuke was slightly annoyed with him right now. This had gone too far.

"Hehe, well you see, I, uh wanted to read it over one last time, and seeing as you and I had brought the book in, they kinda let me. See? Funny, just like I told ya." Tetsuya smiled uneasily at Keisuke who seemed about ready to pull a Freddy Kruger. Tamahome could sense the rising tension and tried to break it up with a bit of his cornball humor.

"Haha, yeah that _is_ funny Tetsuya. It reminds me of the time I nearly……" his voice trailed off as all the serious glares fell upon him. '_Aww I didn't even get to tell my joke!_'

"Well anyway, Tetsuya, Tamahome and I are going back because they need all the help they can get and-" but Miaka was cut off by Tetsuya, who jumped up immediately.

"I'm going with you!"

"WHAT?!!?!" they all yelled out at once, shocked by his bravado.

"Di-iid did I stutter?! I'm going with Tamahome and Miaka to get Arashi back here! And you can't make me change my mind." Tetsuya ordered. He wanted to make sure for himself that she was okay. Byakko could go to hell for all he cared, he just wanted her back.

"But Tetsuya, how do you know you will be allowed into the book? Last time you didn't exactly join us, you know." Yui pointed out.

"Hey, you can't stop before you even start. We should at least try it." Keisuke threw his hands up in defeat as Miaka and Tamahome prepared to take Tetsuya back with them. He ran into her room and came out with a huge bag full of stuff. All 4 of them gave Tetsuya a quizzical look as he attempted to drag it toward the center of the room. None of them said anything as the warm red light wrapped itself once again around Miaka and Tamamhome and surprisingly took Tetsuya and the giant bag as well.

* * *

Arashi woke up to find her favorite shirt gone and replaced by Nuriko's dress. She then looked around her surroundings noticing that she was in unfamiliar territory. '_C'mon girl, yer dreamin' again! Snap out of it!_' A loud squeal broke her train of thought as the flying figure of Miaka came at her, closing in for a hug. Arashi braced her self as her friend hit her with full force, happy to see that she was awake and well. A somber voice cracked through the air as Tetsuya walked in to see her as well. The rest of the warriors filtered in behind Tamahome as the two were reunited in an elated scene filled with tears and hugging. Tetsuya then walked over to Tasuki and shook his hand vigorously.

"Thank you so much Tasuki for finding Arashi. I mean it, thank you."

Tasuki just scratched the back of his head humbly and looked off toward the corner of the room. "Nah, it was nothing. I jus' happened t' find her on my way cross-country is all." He began to blush slightly as Tetsuya turned back to Arashi. He had a feeling of déjà vu that he just couldn't shake ever since he had seen that girl in the woods. It was starting to drive him nuts.

Arashi grabbed Miaka and brought her over to the side of all the commotion. There was just so many bishonen in one place; she had to know why Miaka hadn't told her about this place sooner.

"Miaka! How could ya keep this li'l bishie heaven of yer's all to yerself! I mean _come on!_ Have ya looked at all these guys, they're absolutely gorgeous, each in their own way!" Arashi strained to keep her voice down, so as not to alert all the men in the vicinity. She felt like she had been the winner on some fantasy game show or something and this was her reward; to be surrounded by beautiful guys. It was enough to make any girl melt.

"Ummm, well you see, I never really thought-" she was cut off however by a groaning

Tetsuya, who had dragged a huge duffle bag in by the handles and looked like he was straining every muscle in his body, Nuriko just grabbed it from him and flung it on the bed, nearly breaking the bed frame in the process.

"Jeeze Tetsuya whadda packin' in there? Everything ya own?" Arashi looked on in amusement.

"Well, actually it's everything _you _own, and some of my stuff. It seems like we're going to be here awhile so I brought you things you might need."

Arashi hooked Tetsuya in a half nelson and gave him a thankful noogie. He was always thinking of others before himself, but then she realized what he had said and it just hit her that he meant it.

"Wait, _what_? Whoa whoa whoa! Rewind! Why're we gonna to be here fer awhile? What's goin' on here?" Arashi looked at each individual with a scrutinizing gaze. There was something going on that she obviously didn't know about. If it involved her missing her finals and flunking out of college, she damn well deserved to know what's going on! Everyone seemed to crumble under her intense look, casting their gaze downward toward their feet. It was Miaka who finally spoke up, explaining the situation and what it entailed, and other warriors filled in what Byakko himself had said. Arashi just blankly stared at Miaka, as if not comprehending anything she had just been told, as if it was all a lie. She had to stay here, for the rest of her life, all because she was born in the modern world by a mistake? This wasn't fair. She had to leave all that she had known in exchange for helping people she doesn't even remember? This day just took a turn for the worse and it was on a one-way train to the bottom.

* * *

Arashi remained in a dreary mood for the next three days as plans were made to head west for Sairo, where they would meet up with Subaru and Tokeki. She tried to be happy, to cheer herself up, but there really wasn't anything to be happy about. Well except for the fact that she didn't have to take the horrible finals that awaited her back home and she was surrounded by guys. However, even that thought made her sad; she couldn't think of the other world as her home any more, she had to start thinking as this world as her home. But it wasn't all that bad, it wasn't as crowded as Japan and it certainly wasn't as noisy. She could actually see the stars at night without much effort. It was kind of relaxing actually. It would be so much better if it was a vacation rather than a permanent move. Tomorrow they would be heading toward the desert nation of Sairo, and traveling in any way except walking or driving kind of scared Arashi, and she wasn't too sure about horses either.

"Why the long face hun?" Nuriko had come up to Arashi in the middle of her musings and had startled her.

"You're…Nuriko, right? I'm still tryin' to get all yer names down. As fer th' long face; I dunno, th' whole thoughta me stayin' here is just kinda overwhelmin', ya know?" Arashi inwardly sighed as Tamahome walked up.

"You know, I've been thinking."

"Uh oh, I hope ya didn't hurt yerself Tamahome. Thinkin' could be deadly fer a guy like you." Arashi giggled. It was just too easy. He set himself up for it every time and the opportunity was just too good to pass up. Around the corner came another laugh as Tasuki joined the little group.

"I see someone's been doin' my job since Tama's been in th' other world." Tasuki smirked. This was going to be quite an entertaining adventure. He couldn't wait to see how Tamahome handled _two_ antagonists on his tail.

"As I was saying, Arashi there really isn't any good reason that you can't go back when this is over. I mean, look at me; I'm a warrior of Suzaku that was reborn in the modern world and I can go back and forth. I think it would be the same for you." Arashi sat there for a moment, contemplating what Tamahome had just said.

"I think I'm gonna go to th' garden. I need some time to think." With that she made her way to the royal gardens. As soon as she stepped outside, Arashi was in awe. The trees were in bloom with sweet-scented blossoms and the flowers overflowed on the bushes and the grass. It was as if winter did not affect the plants here at all. Well that or it wasn't winter yet. Finding solace on a small patch of grass amid the trees and flowers, Arashi sat down and began to meditate. It always seemed to calm her down when her mind was going one hundred miles an hour, and right now it was going at least a thousand. Closing her eyes, she began to concentrate on finding her center, her calm. Thing began coming into focus like a picture becoming clear. The path that lay out before her came into view and it was long, windy and full of potholes, but she did see and end. However, there where also many places where the path seemed to branch off into uncertainty, and fade into the distance.

Unbeknownst to Arashi, Hotohori decided to walk his gardens as well. As he came to where Arashi was meditating, he chanced upon a peculiar site: Arashi sitting in the lotus position, _in mid-air. _To Hotohori, this was by no means an unusual occurrence, but it did catch him off guard. Being slightly behind schedule, he needed to gain her attention, and by doing so, snap her out of her reverie. He did not expect however, that she would awaken with no idea how she came to be hovering in the garden. "Ahem." "Hmm? Is it time to go alrea-gah! How is this possib-ahh" Opening her eyes to find her self face to face with Hotohori, who was standing, caused her lose her total balance and Arashi began to wobble violently before falling all together. On instinct, Hotohori reached out and caught her, stopping her short dissension to the ground. Arashi threw her arms around Hotohori and shouted, "My hero!" before he let her down.

* * *

Heading to Sairo was going to be a very interesting endeavor for all. Coming to rest after a full day's ride west, the small troop began settling in for the night. Miaka and Arashi sat down and started to play cards while Tasuki made the fire in the center of the circle. Sadly, Hotohori had to stay back at the palace and could not join in on this venture either. Someone needed to run the country, and that job rested squarely on Hotohori's shoulders. A small audience had gathered around Arashi and Miaka to watch them play with these strange pieces of paper.

"Okay Arashi, do you want me to tell your fortune?" Miaka had a mischievous glint in her eye and Arashi was unsure as how to proceed.

"Why don't ya do yerself first, Miaka, I wanna see how it's done.'"

"All right then I will. First you shuffle the deck, then you cut it. Then think of the name of the boy you like and tap your finger on the top, one tap for each letter in his first whole name. T-A-M-A-H-O-M-E, 8 letters so I tap it 8 times. After that I sort the cards into four piles. Now this next part requires a bit of understanding or else it would look like you just stop on random cards. After you have the four piles, you flip them face up until you come across one of the four following cards: King of Spades, Ace of Spades, Queen of Hearts and the Ace of Hearts. You do this two more times reducing the number of piles down to two. Then you pick which of the two piles go on top." Miaka then proceeded to flip the cards over once again; only this time she laid them out in a corresponding pattern. It was as follows; Queen of Hearts on the top, diagonal from the Ace of Spades on the bottom, followed diagonally up by the King of Spades and the Ace of Hearts down below.

"This means that Tamahome and I were meant to be. See how the king and queen are looking at each other? And each ace is the heart of the corresponding suit, meaning that I have Tamahome's heart,"

"Heheh better watch out boy, a heart in the hands of a woman is just asking for trouble," Arashi joked.

"And he has mine. Soo pthhhhhh" Miaka blew a raspberry at Arashi for interrupting her. Now it was Arashi's turn on the chopping block, and Miaka had just the name for her. She leaned over and whispered a name in her ear as Arashi gave the girl a quizzical look. She just shrugged her shoulders and tapped the deck 6 times and Miaka began the process all over again.

"Hey, I thing ya fergot one letter," Tasuki interjected, confused as to why there was only six and not seven taps on the deck.

"How many are there supposed to be, Tasuki?" Arashi giggled at the irony.

"Well aren't there seven letters in Tetsuya?" he began to count off on his fingers. Miaka and Arashi just rolled with laughter and continued with the sorting of cards. When all was said and done, there were only five cards left, and a peculiar setup began to appear. A King of Spades on the top, diagonal from the Ace of Hearts on the bottom, followed diagonally up by The Joker and the Queen of Hearts down below and the Ace of Spades finishing out at the top.

"I don't remember leaving The Joker in the deck."

* * *

yeah yeah i know a bit slow but trust me it will pick up in the next chapter. And for those of you who read this before I fixed it, I am truly sorry! Stupid macs messed up the whole thing!! chops the school comp to pieces arrrrrrgggggggggggghhh! hey and don't forget to review! plz plz dear god review! 


End file.
